2013-10-28

My previous posts (part 1 and 2) have been concerned with a
castle ruin called Karlsborg, to the south of Hamburgsund. I have tried to put
this rather unexplored ruin into a historical and economic context. More
questions have been raised than answered by my investigations, and it is
necessary to further explore this castle using both microscopic and macroscopic
forms of research. Today, we will be investigating the historic place names of
Bohuslän in general, in order to see what this information might tell us about
the context of Karlsborg.

The use of place names in historical
research is, according to me, somewhat controversial, at least in more
deterministic forms of toponomy. We need to exercise caution when using this
information as a base for our interpretations, as it is sometimes difficult to
know exactly when a place was
named, and why. However, toponomy in
Sweden is based on profound research, both linguistic and historical, and it is
an intriguing material to use.

Beneath, I have selected some general
elements in place names, from different periods, and tried to analyse their
geographical patterns through the use of GIS. As I am quite the novice in the
use of place names in historical research, I ask you not to take this
analysis too seriously. The material used is heavily generalized, and a closer
investigation would be needed in order to use this in more serious research.
However, I think that even this shallow analysis have provided me with a nice
picture of the historical development of Bohuslän’s settlement patterns.

Prehistoric Place Names

A map showing prehistoric place names in Bohuslän. The white line marks the border of Bohuslän to neighboring counties.Blue: -by

Purple: -hem

Light green: -landa

According
to traditional toponomy, there are certain place names that can be traced back
to a pre-christian period. In Bohuslän, these are names ending with either “-by”,
“-hem” or “-landa”, e.g. “Svenneby”, “Solhem” or “Kavlanda”. The map shown above is made by
selecting present day communities with these elements present in their names. It
is clear that “-by” is the most common prehistoric element in Bohuslän’s place
names. We should also note, as seen in the map above, that inland Bohuslän is
quite devoid of communities with prehistoric place names. This might illustrate
that settlements, at least in the late iron age, were
shaped by the fact that most arable soils in this region are located close to
the coast. We can also assume that these rural communities, though mainly
agricultural, also considered fish an important part of their sustenance.

Medieval Place Names

Map showing settlement development in the middle ages. The white line marks the border of Bohuslän to neighboring counties.

Blue: Prehistoric names

Purple: -hult

Orange: -rud

Brown: -röd

Pink: -torp

Place names from the medieval period in
Bohuslän usually contain the elements “-röd”, “-rud”, “-torp” and “-hult”. Most
of the medieval names in Bohuslän contain the element “-röd”, referring to
cleared ground, and often cultivation. The map above shows a potential
development from prehistoric to medieval times, were most of the densely
forested area have been colonized. Usually, this phenomenon have been connected
to the population growth of the High Middle Ages which, along with
technological development, allowed previously quite uninhabited areas to be
settled. The initial expansion was halted in the middle of the 14th
century, with the outbreak of the Black Death and the following economical
decline, also in combination with the environmental change to what have been
called “The Little Ice Age”.

The redoubled amount of settlements seen in
the map should not be interpreted as a redoubling of the population during the
High Middle Ages. Most of these new settlements were small, lacking the more
extensive farmlands found in older communities. Perhaps, we can connect this
new settlement pattern to an increased use of the forest itself, but this
requires further investigation. Timber was important trade goods in medieval
Scandinavia, but whether the settlement expansion in Bohuslän is connected to
this, we cannot at the moment tell.

Karlsborg and Place Names

Place names around Karlsborg

Blue: Prehistoric names

Brown: -röd

Pink: -torp

This
investigation has not clearly shown any connection to the region around
Karlsborg. We cannot observe any community name in the immediate area
containing the historic elements under study. The closest settlements are
Svenneby, Smedseröd, Skogby and Allestorp, all presumably existing
simultaneously with the castle and within a 8km radius.. However, they do not
indicate any certain importance connected to the location of Karlsborg. This
might be explained by the fact that we have excluded many historic places in
our investigation (important places such as Dynge, Apelsäter, Hallinden and
Vettland are not included), where we have sought a general pattern rather than
interesting particularities. More local place names, among them the names of
rivers and natural features, should be taken into account when conducting a
more localized analysis.

If we ignore the above criticism, however
vital it may seem, we can assume that the region was not particularly important
or special in the High Middle Ages, and that the importance can be connected to
the later middle ages. Many of the place names in the investigation above
defines settlements founded in the initial expansion of the earlier middle
ages, and the pattern may have
changed during the later middle ages. If the area around Karlsborg had been
previously unimportant, it would explain why the site was not extensively
fortified until the middle of the 15th century. This, at least in a
very generalized way, supports the idea of seasonal fishing, caused by a
herring period, as a foundation for the importance of Hamburgsund and
Karlsborg. While written history does not support this theory, it is not
unlikely. Maybe be the lack of documentation of this period can be traced to a
high degree of international activity in the area. More on this in coming
posts!

That was
all for now! As usual, you are more than welcome to share your thoughts and
ideas on the topic discussed. If you found this post interesting, feel free to
leave a comment!

2013-10-14

In my last post, I
introduced the ruin of Karlsborg castle, just south of modern day
Hamburgsund. We explored the archaeological features of this castle,
mainly through LIDAR data, and did a summary of what historical
sources can tell us about this place. It seems like this was an
important location, at least in the late middle ages and the early
renaissance. Both Swedish and Danish kings obviously had an interest
in controlling the area, and Karlsborg castle.

In this post, I am
going to discuss the role that seasonal fishing might have played in defining the importance of this region. Using data from FMIS (Fornminnesregistret =
lit. the register of ancient memories (ancient monuments)), we will explore what traces this activity left in the landscape.

Bohuslän have, at
least in more recent centuries, long been associated with the fishing
industry. The herring periods brought economic development to this
otherwise quite marginalized area. Historical sources indicate that
the fishing of herring was common already in the 11th century,
and from Vestlandet (Western Norway) and Viken (the earlier name for
Bohuslän) herring was exported to Germany and England in the late
12th century. However,
it was not until the late 16th century that this fishing
reached larger and more important proportions. From the middle of
this century, fishermen from other parts of Denmark (which then
included Norway) came to the coast of Bohuslän, establishing
seasonal fishing settlements where they stayed from autumn till late
winter. The large amount of
herring that were drawn to Bohuslän during this period also
attracted fishermen from abroad, both from the Baltic area and from
North-western Europe. The city of Marstrand, located just north of
Gothenburg, became a centre for international herring trade.
Permanent coastal fishing stations were also established during the
late 16th century, marking a change in habitation from
earlier centuries. The herring period of the 16th century
lasted for 40 years, after which the activity in the area ceases
quite abruptly.

The type of seasonal
fishing settlements discussed above are called “tomtningar”
(singular = “tomtning”) in Swedish. These are features usually
found in connection to beaches of different kinds, identified by a
low stone wall enclosing a space usually about 1-10 meters wide.
While there are some inland examples, almost all tomtningar
are located on islands. The geometrical shape of a tomtning
may vary from circular to quadratic. It is not unusual that several
of these features lie side by side, like a row house. Archaeological
investigations have shown that tomtningar usually can be dated
to a period between the 13th - 16th centuries.
Investigations on Söö island, south-west of Gothenburg, have also
shown that bones from cows and sheep are commonly found in these
features, indicating that fish were considered important trade goods,
and not meant for personal sustenance. In addition, English coins dating to the 13th
century have been found in tomtningar on Söö island,
indicating the presence of international fishermen.

A map created in ArcGIS showing remains in the area related to the sea and fishing. You will see this map again in coming posts, but for now we are mainly concerned with "tomtningar". Click for larger picture.

We can see, in the map,
that there are 23 tomtningar on the islands outside Karlsborg.
From the above material, we can assume that at least some of
these are from the active period of the castle. But does this really
give us a clue to the importance of this region? Why would Kings care
about this?

According to medieval
law, all local inhabitants had the right to use the beach for their
boats, nets and to bring up the catch. But the King
owned all land defined as “Forstrand” (foremost beach?).
What is meant by this is somewhat unclear, though a common
interpretation is that the king owned a part of the beach, and
presumably all islands without a farming population. The King would then be the only person with the
right to allow fishermen from other parts of the kingdom and abroad
to use these islands and beaches for seasonal fishing. We can also
assume that this would give him the opportunity to collect tax from
these fishermen, thus increasing his revenues and giving him control
of international trade.

A Point Density analysis done in ArcGIS showing the geographically dense areas of "tomtningar" in the County of Västra Götaland. Click for larger picture.

The Point Density
Analysis of Tomtningar in the county of Västra Götaland shows that
the area just north of Hamburgsund is an area with a large amount of
tomtningar, an amount only
bested by denser concentrations in the archipelago outside of
Gothenburg. While tomtningar
in the area of Gothenburg have been the focus of some research, the
concentration found to the north of Hamburgsund and to the west of
present day Fjällbacka, have been largely ignored. In my opinion,
this concentration, in relation to the political history of the area,
can provide a plausible explanation for the importance of Karlsborg.

This,
however, must be explored on a deeper level, especially as we cannot
give a definite dating for these seasonal fishing settlements. Given
the archaeological investigations in other areas, we can presume, but
not of course be entirely sure. We have to delve deeper into the
historical and geographical characteristics of this area, in order to
see what other features that define the region. For this, see my
upcoming posts!

Till
then, I would very much appreciate my readers insight and ideas. Here
are some questions I would like to raise:

What
do you think of the above theory?

Would
the prospect of economic revenues be enough motivation for
controlling this specific area?

Why
were the islands north of Hamburgsund, as compared to other areas in
Bohuslän, so dense in seasonal fishing?

2013-10-05

Just south of Hamburgsund in
Bohuslän lies a place commonly known as “Slottet”. This is in an
area nowadays mostly inhabited by summer guests, due to the exclusive
attraction of Bohuslän's extensive archipelagos. In summertime, this
area is full of life, but during the long and harsh winters only a
few natives remain. This is nothing new, really, as
the coast of Bohuslän have been inhabited seasonally in the past as
well, especially during the herring periods of the 16th,
17th and 18th centuries, when seasonal fishing
stations where formed on the islands and the coastline. But perhaps,
in more distant times, this area was much more active. This can be
seen by the many archaeological traces left in the landscape, where
we especially can discern a rich Bronze Age culture. Among other
things left from this period, we find a large amount of rock carvings
and cairns (“röse” in Swedish) in the area close to Hamburgsund
and Slottet. But it is not these highly interesting Bronze Age
remains that we shall discuss now, but rather the traces of
historical times, of the medieval and early renaissance activities in
this area.

The beautiful view from Karlsborg, where you can see a part of the earth-works in the foreground. The actual walls of Karlsborg were probably wooden palisades, for which the earth-works that remain served as a foundation.Photo taken from: wadbring.com

The name “Slottet” is derived
mainly from a ruin on a small mountain just by the southern cove
leading into the modern community of Hamburgsund. This mountain is
surrounded by steep cliffs on all sides, except in the west where
what could be either a natural or a humanly constructed ( though
quite steep) slope leads up to the top, where the ruin is situated.
In modern times, a staircase has been built on this slope, enabling
less fanatical visitors to access the ruin as well. When I mention
“ruin”, most people would expect this to be a sort of “classical”
castle ruin, with clear remains of walls, towers etc. This is not the
case. All that remains are some earth-works surrounding the top of
the mountain, and for the trained eye it is also possible to detect
the remains of what could be two barbicans (“förborgar” in
Swedish) in the slope.

An archaeologist named Wilhelm Berg
excavated the castle in the early 20th century. Among the
artefacts where the backside of a canon, canon balls, gun bullets,
points from arrows, crossbow bolts and lances. While these artefacts
point to military functions, we can of course not depend entirely on
the inadequate documentation and excavation methods from this early
period in the history of Archaeology. Nevertheless, these findings
are interesting.

A Digital Elevation Model made with LIDAR data. The two potential barbicans are marked with blue rings, and the path up to the top is marked with green. The blue area roughly corresponds to the sea level of the late medieval period. Note the highly visible earth-works that surround the top of the mountain, and the iron age mounds visible where the path starts.

According to written history, the
proper name for this castle ruin is “Karlsborg”, and was
fortified in 1455 by the marshal of Sweden, Tord Bonde. Entire
Bohuslän had in 1455 been taken by the marshal on king Karl Knuttson
Bonde's orders, and Karlsborg was built in order to gain control over
the fairway between Denmark and Norway, which passed the islands just
outside Hamburgsund. However, Tord Bonde was murdered in 1456 by the
castle's bailiff, a Dane called Jösse Bosson. After this, Sweden
lost control over Bohuslän to the Union (at the time between Denmark
and Norway). During the reign of Gustav Vasa, northern Bohuslän was
attacked by Swedish troops once more in the 1520s. Karlsborg was
restored to it's former glory in 1525, after which the castle became
the administrative centre of the region. This secured the connection
of Sweden to the North Sea and the trade routes to England and
western Europe, if the estuary of Göta Älv, close to present-day
Gothenburg, had been ceased by the Union. In 1531, the castle was attacked and
razed by the troops of the former Danish king Kristian II ( known in
Sweden as “Kristian the Tyrant”), and the castle was never
restored again.

The location of Karlsborg in Hamburgsund's strait.

That was all for now! In the next
post, I will use further GIS analysis to investigate why
this place was so important. Karlsborg obviously played an important
role in controlling Bohuslän, but there is no clear urban central place in this region, from this period. I will use a mainly quantitative
geographical material, through a long-time perspective, to see if we
can find some clues. Till then, I hope you have enjoyed this brief
introduction to a very interesting site!

About me

My name is Oscar Jacobsson and I am a graduate student at the department of Archaeology and Ancient History at Lund University in Sweden.
This blog is dedicated to the discussion of medieval landscapes in many different ways, though my main interest lies in the relationship between natural and human landscapes. Therefore most of the published material will concern this subject.
Feel free to contact me on:
oscarjacobsson@live.com